Syphile was a potential heir to the Val'Sarghress clan that raised Ariel Val'Sarghress until her tenth birthday. She was ultimately stripped of her title and exiled from the clan after multiple failures in the eyes of Ill'haress Quain'tana Val'Sarghress.

She sought refuge with the Vel'Sharen, and attempted to assassinate Quain'tana on their behalf. She was killed during this failed attempt.

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Appearance and Personality

Syphile carries a generally negative and entitled attitude everywhere she goes. She is convinced that her life is miserable because of Quain'tana's impossibly high standards for her, and she rarely takes responsibility for anything she does. She hates Ariel most of all, as she believes that Ariel is given unfair preferential treatment. This resulted in incredibly hostile behavior to Ariel, even when raising her at a young age.

Syphile usually wears her long white hair pulled back in a ponytail, and dresses herself in flowing robes or dresses fit for a proper Val. She also has a high-collared black cloak she wears over her clothing on formal occasions. Her eyes are tainted red.

Biography - Background

Following the betrayal of Mel'arnach and the incident that destroyed the mind of Laele'aell, a now-barren Quain'tana was left with no viable heir. Impressed by Syphile's mother and father, who were two of the strongest members in the Sarghress clan, Quain'tana adopted Syphile as an infant and raised her to be the heir to the Val'Sarghress clan. When she came of age to attend school at Orthorbbae, Quain'tana charged her to learn summoning. However, the new headmistress, Snadhya'runes Vel'Sharen, began to mandate that any who sought to learn summoning be tainted. When Syphile returned home and Quain'tana saw her red eyes, she was furious. She considered Syphile's tainting to be a sign of weakness and declared Syphile unfit to lead the clan.

Biography - Arc I

Raising Ariel

In order for Syphile to redeem herself, Quain'tana placed her in charge of Ariel's upbringing. Syphile's only hope to redeem herself and regain her lost status now lay in her ability to teach Ariel to be a proper Sarghress heir. Syphile became a harsh teacher, often asking for the impossible and delivering threats and physical punishment when Ariel failed. Syphile's anger and bullying continued to increase as the time drew closer for Ariel to be presented to Quain'tana, and Ariel grew to loathe her mentor immensely. A few days before the meeting with Quain'tana, Syphile discovered Ariel's new pet cat Fuzzy. The cat bit Syphile on the hand and, in a fit of rage, Syphile crushed the cat's head against the wall.

When Ariel was introduced to Quain'tana for the first time a few days later, Ariel was asked what her greatest wish was; to which she angrily shouted she wished to kill Syphile. Quain'tana told her to do so right there, but Ariel felt she was too weak to accomplish it, displeasing Quain'tana greatly. To Quain'tana, Ariel was a weak child that could not hold the eye of her mother, was unmannered, and desired to kill her tutor. Syphile had failed miserably. She was forced to remain in the fortress but was viewed as an incompetent waste.

Fall From Grace

A few years later, Ariel returned from Orthorbbae with one of her tormentors, Mir'kiin Vel'Vloz'ress, and killed him in front of her mother. Quain'tana rewarded Ariel by naming her official heir and offering her Syphile's lands. Syphile was furious, but had no means to fight back.

A later encounter where Ariel captured Chrys'tel Vel'Sharen, brought Zala'ess Vel'Sharen, one of the heads of the Vel'Sharen clan, to the Sarghress home. Zala'ess quickly tired of talking with Quain'tana and went to the door to leave. Under Zala'ess's stare, Syphile opened the door for the rival clan, infuriating Quain'tana, as she felt her authority had been undermined in her own home. Syphile was warned not to fail again.

Soon afterwards, Ariel found her crying in a hallway. The two got in a heated argument that prompted Syphile to attack Ariel with a Val'Jaal'darya-made weapon. Ariel managed to absorb the artifact with her shape shifting abilities and Syphile began to open a nether gate in order to taint Ariel, to make Ariel suffer the same fate as her. Syphile was stopped by the sudden appearance of Mel, who subdued Syphile and shoved her down the stairs to lie at Quain'tana's feet as she was speaking with her officers. This proved to be the last straw and Syphile's title was taken from her and she was banished from the Sarghress.

One Last Chance

Hoping to ingratiate herself to the Vel'Sharen clan, Syphile freed Chrys'tel and returned her to her clan for the promise of a position in the Sharen. Zala'ess was unimpressed with Syphile's actions and judged her to be of weak character. She would only offer Syphile a position as a servant in the clan, but Chrys'tel negotiated with her mother until Zala'ess gave her one last chance. Syphile agreed to train under the Vel'Sharen for one month and then attempt to assassinate her mother, Quain'tana.

Syphile returned to the Sarghress fortress with a Vel'Sharen military envoy and slipped straight to Quain'tana's quarters. She was beaten deftly by the unarmed Il'haress, who again mocked her weakness. With nothing left to lose, Syphile spat insults in her mother's face, blaming her for all of the dysfunction in the Sarghress main line. She quipped that Quain'tana poisons everyone she gets close to and that she would die alone as a result. Quain'tana stabbed Syphile mercilessly through the neck, remarking that it was a pity that it was only on the verge of death that she gained the strength to be a Sarghress.

Syphile's attack failed, but her words rang in Quain'tana's mind long after her death, prompting the stoic Ill'haress to be a better mother for Ariel.

Notable Quotes

"Yes. Go ahead mother. Do what you do best. Do the only thing you know." - Accepting her imminent execution at the hands of Quain'tana.